Colombia/Webinar on "Multilingualism and scientific publications in the Americas

On October 7, 2025, the Pontifical Javeriana University and the Réseau international des Chaires Senghor de la Francophonie organized an international and interdisciplinary webinar on the theme of "Plurilingualism and scientific publications in the Americas". The event is part of the work of the Commission Recherche et Valorisation of the Conférence régionale des recteurs (C2R) Amériques de l'AUF.

Today, multilingualism is a major issue in international research and knowledge dissemination. In a context where English is the dominant language of scientific publications, many research institutions and networks are questioning the place to be given to other languages in scholarly communication.

The aims of this webinar were to

• to provide a forum for reflection on the role of multilingualism in scientific publication;

• contribute to debates on publication evaluation systems in the Americas ;

• and to highlight the diversity of research and publishing practices in multilingual contexts.

A forum for exchange on plurilingualism

The webinar brought together members of the French-speaking academic community in the Americas, as well as researchers interested in linguistic issues in the dissemination of scientific knowledge in the Americas.

Andrea Torres Perdigón, from the Pontifical Javeriana University in Bogotá and President of the C2R Americas Research and Promotion Commission, opened the meeting by stressing the importance of a constant dialogue between languages in scientific production. She was joined by Xavier North (Alliance Française, Paris), Nicolas Morales and Aymeric Durez (Pontifical Javeriana University, Bogota), Barbara Lopes (University of La Plata, Argentina), Víctor Montoya (National University of Tres de Febrero, Buenos Aires), Adelaïde Russo (Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge), and Cathia Papi (Université TÉLUQ, Québec), the latter also a member of the AUF's International Committee of Francophone Editors.

The presentations addressed a number of major issues relating to scientific plurilingualism. The discussions began by highlighting the profound relationship between thought and the mother tongue, emphasizing the need for researchers to be able to think and publish in their own language. The question of translation also took center stage. Other presentations focused on the effects of French-language publishing projects in Spanish-speaking countries, particularly within university publishing houses in Latin America and Colombia. Participants also explored forms of exchange and hybridization between different linguistic and academic traditions, as well as scientific evaluation and indexing systems, which tend to shape uneven linguistic landscapes depending on the context.

A number of speakers also focused on the place of French-speaking literary authors, evoking the tensions encountered when trying to get published in French in the United States. Others stressed the essential role of French-language scientific journals in preserving French as a research language and in recognizing a plurality of scientific expressions.

Rich debates on the visibility and legitimacy of scientific languages

The discussions revealed just how crucial it is to enrich relations between languages and cultures within universities and research traditions. Speakers were unanimous in stressing the need for truly multilingual research and for academic institutions to be more open to linguistic diversity. A number of observations were made concerning the disparities in research visibility depending on the language of publication and the indexing systems used. These observations led to in-depth reflection on the need to rethink scientific evaluation systems, so that they take into account the diversity of languages and academic traditions, and do not limit scientific legitimacy to the English language alone.

A variety of disciplinary and contextual approaches

The presentations testified to the diversity of approaches and national contexts. Some focused on the editorial aspects specific to certain disciplines, notably literary studies, while others proposed comparisons between the visibility of French and that of other languages in the Americas, based on the analysis of different databases and classification systems.

In addition to sharing experiences, a number of concrete initiatives were presented, illustrating the vitality of Francophone and bilingual publishing projects on the continent. Numerous questions were asked by the audience, notably on the role of artificial intelligence in translation, the future of languages in scientific publications and the contribution of linguistic diversity to a more open and inclusive science.

The organizers have announced that a new webinar will be held in 2026, in the form of a series of podcasts produced by C2R's Research and Valorization Commission, to extend and deepen the reflections initiated during this first meeting.

If you were unable to attend our webinar, you can view the recording in the video below.

Source: www.auf.org/